


Black Keys

by thesoundofnat



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Iron Man - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Canonical Character Death, I love pain and suffering, Piano, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-16
Updated: 2017-05-16
Packaged: 2018-11-01 11:25:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10920837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesoundofnat/pseuds/thesoundofnat
Summary: All he needed to do was lift the lid and let his fingers dance over the keys like he’d done so many times before. No one would know, as his hands wouldn’t brush away any dust since the keys were protected from it. He could get away with it easily if he wanted to.(Or, Tony was taught how to play the piano by his mother. He never played again after her passing.)





	Black Keys

**Author's Note:**

> Apparently I love breaking my own damn heart. This was inspired by [this beautiful yet heartbreaking fanart](http://cazdraws.tumblr.com/post/160661972126/mothers-day) by cazdraws over on tumblr. Go give it love, and I hope you'll like this!

_Maria Stark let her fingers hover over the black and white keys for just a moment before she pressed down, creating a soft melody that she knew would grow louder with time. Knew would grow stronger and more confident as her own insecurities withered away. She was very aware of how much quicker it would take for her to get into the act of playing if she just practiced more, but whenever she had a moment to herself she rarely sought out her old yet pristine piano. It just wasn’t something she did._

_As he fingers danced over the keys she felt her own soul swaying along to the rhythm, and eventually her body followed its lead and she was sitting there, on the slightly uncomfortable piano bench that really needed a pillow or two, rocking back and forth to the sound of the music she herself was creating, and she felt herself relax for the first time that week. For once she didn’t feel observed, and therefore felt at ease enough to let some of her usual act drop._

_Letting her guard down was always a risky move to make, because anyone could walk in any second, and she would then be forced to slap it on at the speed of light, and so many things could go wrong if you acted in haste. But she knew that Jarvis had spotted her entering the room, and would keep uninvited guests away from her for as long as he could. That knowledge made her relax even more, and as she paused briefly to turn the page of her music sheets she could feel a thrill of_ something _. She knew returning to the real world would be hard after this, but she would do it with her head held high and her spirits even higher, for it wasn’t a bad world per se, but sometimes she just needed a break from it, and even if diving back into it would feel good it would also force her to readjust again. It was a lonely game she played._

_It took her approximately five minutes of undisturbed playing before she realized she was being watched, and as she stilled her fingers and threw a slightly panicked look toward the door she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was she was fearing, but she felt her heart calm down when her gaze landed on Tony’s face, his eyes wide and mouth not completely shut. He seemed enthralled, though it only lasted for a second before a fear similar to her own found his face, and he was seemingly rooted to the floor as he tried to decide what to make of the fact that he’d gotten caught. Maria couldn’t help but feel as if he was a reflection of herself._

_“Tony,” she said softly, because she wasn’t mad. Could never be mad when he saw him. “Come here, darling.”_

_Tony, too small for his six years of age, padded up to her slowly and accepted the hand she held out for him. She gave the hand a squeeze before lifting him up on the bench, letting her fingers comb through his hair until he pulled his head away. “You don’t like that?”_

_“It hurts after a while,” he explained._

_“Oh, I’m sorry.”_

_“It’s okay. It feels good too.”_

_Maria tapped her fingers on the piano. “Do you want me to teach you how to play?”_

_Tony frowned at the instrument. “Is it hard?”_

_“Everything is hard until you’ve learned it. Some things are easier to learn, and some take a longer time.”_

_“Do you think it will take me a longer time?”_

_“I have no doubt you will be a natural.”_

_Tony smiled timidly at her, and she gave the piano another tap._

_“Put your hands here.”_

_Tony did, and so their first ever lesson started._

* * *

 

Tony didn’t know why he’d agreed to come to this gala thing when he knew he had to get up at dawn for an early flight the next day. He could blame it on the free booze that would find its way into his hand and then later on his system, but it wasn’t like he didn’t have the means to buy the most expensive bottle he could find. He usually didn’t mind pulling all nighters before flights, because he could always sleep through most of the journey that way, but there was something about tonight that made it harder for him to suffer through the countless of interactions with people whose names he didn’t know that were bound to happen. He felt too tired to keep up an act tonight.

He let his eyes roam around the crowd, trying to see if he could spot a familiar face that also didn’t make him want to run away, but he was left empty handed. Stranded. Only the knowledge that he would be drained beyond belief in a few moments filling his mind.

So he fled, making his way past people as quickly yet as subtly as he could, and once he was out in the semi empty hallway he didn’t stop, passed the bathrooms, and continued with no real destination in mind. He just needed to breathe. He couldn’t breathe with other people sharing his oxygen so hungrily.

He entered the first unlocked room he could find after making sure no one witnessed him going in. It wasn’t much about getting caught, but about being denied a moment alone. He was afraid he would scream if they deprived him of the one thing he really needed right now.

The room was big, of course, and elegantly decorated, though Tony thought it mostly looked tacky. He took a few steps, his eyes going this way and that in order to take it all in. He wasn’t entirely sure what kind of room this was. A few armchairs formed a semicircle around a small glass table, and one wall was covered in overflowing bookshelves. The remaining walls were either covered with paintings, a clock, or heavy curtains that Tony reckoned were in turn covering windows, and on the far end of the room he could spot a cabinet containing whatever, another small table, and a piano so dusty Tony was scared he would be poisoned if he continued breathing, which was ironic.

He approached it slowly, as if drawn to it. It was an old model. A classic of some sort. Despite his many piano lessons he never managed to learn much about the actual instrument, as he spent the majority of his time clinking away on his mother’s old one. The one he’d hidden after her passing both out of fear of someone getting rid of it, and because he wasn’t sure what he would feel if he ever looked at it again.

This one was similar to it, but he noticed the differences easily. He still felt _something_ as he took it all in, from the cushioned bench to the pile of music sheets resting on top of the once polished surface. All he needed to do was lift the lid and let his fingers dance over the keys like he’d done so many times before. No one would know, as his hands wouldn’t brush away any dust since the keys were protected from it. He could get away with it easily if he wanted to.

But he didn’t. He hadn’t played in over 20 years, and he wasn’t about to start now. He unclenched his jaw and took a step back, as if the instrument would attack him any second now. He didn’t doubt it could.

The clock struck midnight, and December 16 was upon them. Tony tried to pretend as if he didn’t notice, as if he didn’t know, but he did. He always did.

He left the room to rejoin the chaos. He didn’t feel any better.

**Author's Note:**

> Here's my [tumblr](http://thesoundofnat.tumblr.com/)


End file.
